The Crocheting Engineer

Custom crochet and knit items made by one very bored engineer

[thecrochetingengineer]

Bunny Lovey

I finished a little bunny lovey for my coworker’s baby. I’m only 3 months late 🤷‍♀️

[randomslasher]

So recently I've started working out with a personal trainer, going to the gym to lift weights and whatnot, as well as training for my next 5k and taking a martial arts self defense class with my dad--but the hobby that has necessitated wrapping my finger with medical tape is crochet.

[thecrochetingengineer]

I have some pretty big callouses on my hands from crocheting. I once crocheted a copper crown from copper wire, and it cut through the callouses. Prettiest and worst project ever.

[thecrochetingengineer]

Baby Dedication Dress

I finished my baby's dedication dress! My favorite color is purple, so I used it for the flowers and sash. The original pattern is a regular toddler dress in grey and pink, but I thought it was perfect for a dedication dress. I didn't really alter it, so I'm posting the pattern below.

Bernat Cozy Posie Dress | Yarnspirations

Knit this little girl's dress in beautiful, Bernat Baby Sport yarn.

[thecrochetingengineer]

Baby Dragon Lovey

I made a little dragon lovey for my baby! It’s made of iris and snapdragon speckle Simple Soft yarn. This is one of my favorite patterns from OneAndTwoCompany.

[thecrochetingengineer]

Baby Hooded Sweater

I finished my baby’s sweater! I’m so proud of how it turned out! It’s very soft (Caron Simply Soft), and I love the colors.

[thecrochetingengineer]

WIP - Baby Hooded Sweater

I’ve been working on a baby sweater for my baby girl the last few months. I went up two sizes, but I’m not sure it will fit her with how fast she’s growing.

[thecrochetingengineer]

Rainbow Baby Blanket

It’s done! I finally finished the rainbow blanket for my rainbow baby. I started this blanket as a part of my therapy after my miscarriage. It has been very healing for me to make and pray over during my pregnancy and these first 3 months with my angel.

[lurking-latinist]

Fiber Arts & Math Poll

Help me test a theory!

If you can do both fiber arts, but one feels more natural or came more easily when you learned it, vote for that one.

If you loved both math subjects or hated both math subjects, vote for the one you loved more/hated less.

Try to vote based on how you feel about the subject/art itself, not how much you liked your teacher, what type of projects you can do, etc.

Which fiber art do you enjoy/prefer AND which math subject do/did you enjoy more?

Knitting / algebra

Knitting / geometry

Crochet / algebra

Crochet / geometry

I do neither fiber art, or didn’t take these math classes (show results)

Voting ended onApr 16, 2023

[gardenforsparrows]

Could I get some fair isle advice? I'm doing ok with the actual technique, but I have to be doing something wrong with how I'm holding the yarn, because the two strands keep turning into a mess.

[unexpectedyarns]

Here ya go.

At first glance the method looks complicated but believe me, I went from colorwork that SUCKED and I was lucky if it fit, to this (outside and inside)

Be sure not to be pulling your floats tight. Stretch the knitting along the needles to test for give. And if necessary turn the work inside out and knit on the inside, carrying floats around the outside, as that’s a slightly longer circumference (there’s prob a vid for that too). But here is the one you need:

[thecrochetingengineer]

I hold my strands in opposite hands. Basically, I knit continental (yarn on left) with my primary color (because I learned crochet first) and knit English (yarn on right) with my secondary color. I also keep the skeins on opposite sides of my body.

[thecrochetingengineer]

Baby Yoda Lovey

One of my coworkers had a baby, so I made him a baby Yoda Lovey!

[wrestlexstitch]

A friend told me about the Loose Ends Project and I think it sounds wonderful. I'm too new to cross-stitching to be of much help, but maybe I can dust off my crocheting skills....

LOOSE ENDS

[gold-from-straw]

Very proud of this lace shawl I’ve just finished knitting! My kids are doing a great job of modelling it too lol! Thinking of starting an Etsy shop and doing stuff to order… I need the money!

[kniteral]

i'm curious. which style of knitting do you prefer?

Continental/Picking

English/Throwing

Both for different projects

Other (specify in tags or comments)

Voting ended onFeb 28, 2023

[thecrochetingengineer]

Hi Folks!

Sorry I haven't been posting my crafts this last year. I've been hard at work on another project. My daughter arrived last night!

[roboticchibitan]

OK I didn't wanna say it on the post cuz I feel like a judgemental asshole saying this but it's not a judgement I promise I am just trying to help newer fiber artists but...

That tiktok of the coat made from embroidery floss? It's really cool! And very pretty! And a true work of art!

Please do not do that if you want your own tiny Granny square coat. It's very impressive but that is a TERRIBLE material to use to crochet something. There are yarns that can give you the same look with much less pain and hassle that will be much more durable and last much longer.

Embroidery floss is hell to use as yarn and less durable than proper yarn because it lacks twist. When you make a plied yarn, you twist really thin individual threads in one direction, and then when you want to put those thinner yarns into one bigger yarn, you twist those thinner yarns together in the opposite direction to make yarn. And while embroidery floss does have SOME twist, it's a very loose twist, because embroidery floss is meant to come apart.

It's meant to be easy to separate so you can work with the individual threads. When they plied it, they only added enough twist to keep the threads together until they are sold because it's expected you'll take it apart when you buy it. So it's not durable. It won't wear well at all because twist adds strength, up to a certain point.

But! There are really great alternatives you can use! Look for Pima cotton yarn in lace or four ply/fingering weight. You might have to go to a local yarn store for this, or find one online. Pima cotton has that shininess that is so attractive about embroidery floss. And it's usually very soft. Softer than embroidery floss. And it won't split 24/7 while you're crocheting with it.

If it MUST some from the embroidery section, for clout or challenge reasons or whatever, don't use the floss. Use the size 8 Pearle cotton by DMC. It's at least plied with proper twist. It's still shiny. Still thread. Way easier to work with.

It's a beautiful coat but thinking about making something out of embroidery floss makes me cringe so hard. And I've done it. I've crocheted with metallic embroidery thread before (and regular at other points) and it was absolute hell and took forever and hurt my hands. Don't bother. It's painful and slow and sucks. Props to her for having the fucking patience but if you feel inspired to make your own fuckoff tiny cotton coat, you can do it in a better way.

[dobutsu-crossing101]

Ok I’m a tad bit confused so I’ve read charts before but for colorwork and idk what to do do I just follow the written pattern as is? Why does row one have “no stitch” this chart is throwing me off 😩😩😩😩

[thecrochetingengineer]

The written pattern and the chart are the same. Use whichever one is easier for you to understand and ignore the other one.

[misstermushroomsir]

I really love knitting and I’m happy with my progress towards learning new techniques (I just tried intarsia and only had to start over once 😅) but my arthritis is making it difficult for me to keep going. My fingers and hands are so stiff and painful even after taking a few days to rest.

Does anyone have any advice for knitting with rheumatoid arthritis? I really don’t want to give up knitting but I also really need to be able to use my hands.

I would like any suggestions for better tools, techniques, etc from other disabled knitters who have experience dealing with this type of issue.

Would I be better off just giving up and trying crochet instead? My main problem is that my left hand will cramp/lock up from holding onto the needle/work and manipulating the work so it progressively slides up towards the working yarn.

I just want to make fiber arts 😔

[roboticchibitan]

I can help! I used to work in a LYS and there were these needles that were square that this one older lady swore by. I think they were.... kollage? OK looked it up they are called Kollage Squares and I haven't used them myself BUT this is literally what they are designed for and at least one person said they worked.

If those are out of budget, (I found them at Paradise Fibers for $20 so for needles they ARE spendy) there are things you can do. First though, if you aren't already, TAKE BREAKS. It helps more than you think. And understand that you DO have limitations and sometimes simply won't be able to knit for as long as you'd like.

There are stretches for arthritis and stretches specifically for knitters. And the stretches my physical therapist recommended were mostly on the lists of knitter's stretches you can easily google. I'm having a high pain day so I can't type them all out, sorry.

Pain relieving creams do help. I can't do cold or hot creams because they freak me out and I get panic attacks. But if you can procure some, THC creams and lotions are the most effective pain relief I've tried. In my experience, CBD is good for anxiety but not pain. But that might just be me. Voltaren is worth looking into but you have to apply it multiple times a day and it works in like a week. I couldn't keep up with it so it didn't work for me.

That's basically it. I know it's frustrating. I had to stop knitting earlier than I wanted to today because all of a sudden I realized my hands were killing me. It sucks but sometimes you have to quit while you're ahead or you'll do what I did and nearly break a dish by dropping it because your hand gave out (it was over the dishwasher so it didn't fall very far). That's not a good place to be in. Take breaks.

[thecrochetingengineer]

I have RA, and my hands are really bad some days. On those days, I use a low impact style of knitting called Portuguese or pin knitting. You can find videos on YouTube. Essentially, you use your neck or a pin to hold and tension the yarn, which really helps my left hand pain.

I also have had a lot of success with CBD lotion. It may not work for some people, but for me, it works better than NSAIDs. I apply it after I'm done knitting or crocheting for the day because the effects are cumulative the longer you use it. Plus, you don't want your fiber getting greasy.

Like robotic mentioned, I too use a timer to take breaks and stretch my hands. I have an app called Pomodoro that lets me set how long I want to work and how long I want to take a break. For me, I work for 15 minutes and then stretch for 5. Every 4th cycle, I take an extra 10 minute break.

Hope this helps!